A look at the Quality Matters standards and how to begin designing a great course.

1. Quality Matters Boot Camp 2016

2.  Use the Quality Matters rubric and Standard 1 & 7 to
help guide your course development
 Map out your objectives and course content
 Use Folders, Learning Modules, Files, and Items
where appropriate to promote readability and a
student-friendly course
 Use descriptions in Items and other parts of your
course to add visual interest and get students’
attention
 Construct a course sidebar menu that is easy to
follow

3.  You probably already
know it is a rubric for
course design
 It is also a subscription for
institutions to support
professional development
and program growth
 Applies for any type of
course, including online
or hybrid
 You can become certified
to review courses at
institutions nationwide

4.  Standard 1 looks at the
structure of the course
and how students are
able to get around
 Most of the information
that is addressed by
Standard 1 is typically
found in the syllabus
 Syllabus templates:
http://www.pnc.edu/dist
ance/webaccessibility

5.  Description of the
course
 Objectives
 Orientation to
technical elements
 Explanation of grading
and assessment
 Description of
communication
expectations

6.  Relates to instructions
related to student
services and support
 Also important to
include in the syllabus
 Relates to areas
including accessibility,
technical help, and
academic support

7.  Of course, students need to be able to find
the syllabus
 Placing it in a clearly labeled spot, like “Start
Here!” indicates its importance
 Remember that students are not likely to
read such a long document more than once
 Provide shortcuts to important information
like the calendar for the semester in an easily
accessible place

8. A

9.  There is no easy answer – every course is
different
 But, there are some fundamentals that will help
students find their way:
 Syllabus
 Course Calendar with due dates
 “Class Café” or Q&A discussion board for general help
 Lecture notes or introductions to units
 Assignments and/or quizzes
 Links to useful resources or readings

10.  It might be helpful to
draw out the structure
for your course on
paper first
 Plan where students
should go first, second,
third, and so forth
 A paper concept map
can help you visualize
the structure you want

11.  Use Items to provide
information/directions
right on the page
 Use Content Areas,
Folders, and Learning
Modules to categorize and
separate information
logically

12.  Orient students to the course
 Use headings and descriptions to aid
organization
 Name files (or label) so they have meaning to
the learner
 Be consistent in the organization of lessons
 Bundle related activities, assignments,
interaction, assessments in one place – keep
them in context

13.  Using the Rich-Text Editor
 Text Options
 Formatting Options
 Hyperlinks

14.  Visit:
http://www.qmprogram.
org/myqm
 If you are in the
Mentorship program:
enter your email address
and click Forgot
Password
 Not in the Mentorship
program? You are “new
here” and “Purdue
University-North Central
Campus” is your
institution

15.  Click Course Review
Management System
from the toolbar
 Click My Course
Reviews
 Click Self Reviews
 Click Complete New
Self-Review to begin
 You can save and return
to any review you’ve
created anytime

16. Reach us at:
 atrekles@pnw.edu
 http://centers.pnw.edu/teaching for all
workshop notes, links, and training needs